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The Internet
of Things
Companies
Guide
New innovations in IoT, including ideas, standards and
applications are emerging and evolving every day. It
truly is the new frontier for mobile technology. Here is
our guide to which companies are doing what.
 The Internet of Things Companies Guide

The Internet of Things

Companies Guide

The internet of things is the new frontier for technology. We do not say that lightly, but the
signs are all there and the projections too: as devices become more and more connected,
and more people have a potential remote control for all of them in their pocket (read: smart-
phone), the technology could seriously revolutionise our lives much like the internet has.
At its most basic, the Internet of Things (shortened to IoT) is the network of physical objects
communicating with each other through the internet, using sensors, software and network
connectivity to send data to each other. The term Internet of Things was coined in 1999,
but it is only in the last few years that its potential is truly blossoming as connected mobile
devices become more ubiquitous, sensors smaller,. computing power and cloud technology
cheaper. The concept of the IIoT, the Industrial Internet of Things, has also come to the
fore as auto manufacturing, production lines and supply-chain networks network their de-
vices to streamline operations, operate predictive maintenance and gather real-time data to
react to demand, among many other things.
The uses for the IoT are wide-ranging and varied. A concept often cited is that of the Smart
City for example each lamp-post in a city being inter-connected and linked to a cloud-
based platform which tracks light levels and adjusts each lamp posts power accordingly. Or
imagine an industry in which all the tools are networked via sensors communicating with a
central server that keeps track of the stress each tool is put under, and automatically orders

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 The Internet of Things Companies Guide

a replacement part to arrive days before it fails. For a more domestic example, the IoT in a
smart home could have sensors tracking light, temperature and humidity levels to determine
when to turn on the heating and start your washing machine.
From a business perspective too, the future of the Internet of Things and the Industrial
Internet of Things looks bright. According to Gartner, in 2016 there will be up to 6.4 billion
connected things in the world, and McKinsey estimates that the IoT market will comprise a
$11 Trillion business opportunity over the next 15 to 20 years. Given the very close con-
nection between mobile, apps and IoT, weve decided to compile a big list of companies and
services in the sector for those looking to leverage this technology for their business.
There are, of course, many parts to the internet of things: the sensors and their operating
systems, the networks over which the sensors communicate and their protocols, the servers
to receive and store all the data and the software to either automate or analyse it all. Below
we have listed some of the best companies providing each of these services, both on a general
level and in more specific sectors such as the smart home, security and fitness: the latter has
had the most media coverage of IoT applications thanks to things like Fitbit and other fit-
ness-tracking devices.

Platforms
Platforms tie the hardware, the sensors and the data all together, allowing you to create your
own monitoring and analysis apps with their API or providing their own. Google and Apple
have recently gotten in on the IoT market, but there are plenty of other options out there
too, including plenty of open source ones.
HomeKit Apples own connected devices platform, it is open both app and hardware devel-
opers and is obviously compatible with Siri as a trigger for user actions. Highly polished as
youd expect from an Apple release.
Brillo Currently invite-only, but this is Googles IoT platform, so its worth asking for one.
Comes with its embedded OS based on Android, has loads of customisation options and part-
ners with Intel and Qualcomm.
AllJoyn Part of the AllSeen alliance, this is an open source framework designed for inter-
operability between devices, without requiring the internet as network. Comes with a set of
system services.
IoTivity An open source project by the Linux Foundation, and backed by the Open Inter-
connect Consortium, this is one of the biggest and most extensive platforms out there, with
constant updates and great documentation.
Axeda Provided by PTC Software, Axeda is their M2M (Machine-to-Machine) cloud solu-
tion, but it comes with a vast range of services, from security to asset tracking, device man-
agement to predictive maintenance and more.
Arrayent This IoT platform is already used by a number of big-name brands such as Whirl-
pool, Monster and Osram. Has a very large set of features including data analysis, good
security and over-the-air updates.

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 The Internet of Things Companies Guide

Octoblu A codeless and protocol agnostic analytics platform. Uses a drag-and-drop in-
terface to build your analysis software, and can be hosted both privately or on the cloud.
Ayla Networks Specifically designed for enterprise-level applications, this platform aims at
making products IoT-connected at launch by providing consumers with a functional app, and
provide you insights from customer data.
Neura This platform comes with a backend geared towards learnings from customers be-
haviour and data in order to present them with useful notifications on how and when to use
their connected devices. API and 2 SDKs available.
IFTTT Stands for If This Then That. Originally started as a recipe maker for various apps,
it now works with the IoT after collaborating with Belkin WeMo, and as an IoT business is
valued at $170m.
Jasper One if not the highest-valued IoT Platform provider, it has a very powerful Control
Centre, works in a large number of applications and supplies real-time data. Cisco are look-
ing to buy the company.
Gainspan Provides all-in-one modules to develop IoT devices and apps. Sells software dev
kits, chips, BLE modules and more to turn most devices IoT-connected.

Operating Systems
A lot of these operating systems are stream-lined for use on IoT-devices: coded directly in
machine language, theyre built to be as fast as possible, and can sometimes be a bit minimal-
istic (multi-threading is a bonus, for example). If you really want to make your IoT devices
as quick and functional as possible, this is where you need to start. A lot of these are Real
Time operating systems, meaning they are designed for dealing with real-time data as fast as
possible.
Nano-RK Made by Carnegie Mellon University, this Real-Time Operating System was cre-
ated to be used in wireless sensor networks. Uses a Threads programming model.
Contiki Also opensource, Contiki provides low-power internet communication using
both IPv4 and IPv6, applications for it are written in objective C and can run on a range of
low-power wireless devices.
LiteOS This OS for embedded controllers and sensor networks is described as Unix-like.
Allows for multi-network management of data and programs.
RIOT A powerful and programmer-friendly IoT-compatible engine, RIOT offers both C and
C++ programming, multi-threading and real-time operation. Designed with energy efficiency
in mind.
Tiny OS Open-source and BSD-licensed, this operating system was designed for low-power
devices and networks. Averages around 35,000 downloads a year and can be found on Github.
FreeRTOS Claims to have been deployed millions of times with blue chip companies. Simple
and easy to use with only three source files, it was designed to function both for low-power
and normal networks.

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 The Internet of Things Companies Guide

Nimbits A data historian and rule engine that also has its own cloud servers (accessible
for free) and a wrapper to develop Java, web and Android apps.
OpenAlerts This software works to get devices communicating over IP networks (wired
and wireless). A scalable Linux/BSD application, it comes with is own dashboard and can be
managed from a web browser.
Thingsquare Mist A platform to connect devices to smartphones. Featured on the BBC and
Wired among others, it also works with Radios, and has a development team behind it ready
to create bespoke solutions for your product.
Thingspeak Compatible with Arduino, Raspberry Pi, Twitter and mobile apps, this is a da-
ta-collection and analysis software for the internet of things which allows to set up automat-
ed actions to trigger on specific conditions.
IoT Toolkit A project to build a multi-protocol internet of things, so normally siloed
devices can communicate with each other. Comes with its own API.
The Thing System A set of software and network protocols to get devices to communicate
horizontally. Written in node.js, it works on WiFi, Bluetooth and USB networks.
Nitrogen A simple and lightweight node.js software platform, it comes ready to deploy with
a set of dev tools, all to be found on github.
Argot A part-time project, this language to connect devices has been developed over the
course of ten years. Says it is specifically designed to work in embedded environments.
dat Peer-to-peer data sharing platform, works with very large datasets and in real-time
too. Can be found on github and works in browsers and on desktop.

Networks
If your devices are too far away to connect directly to each other, theyll need a network to
link to and carry the data from one to the other. These are some of the best offerings out
there, specifically designed for the internet of things. Seamless WiFi and BlueTooth integra-
tion is something network and device providers are striving to achieve, while some produc-
ers are forgoing classic network protocols entirely to come up with better solutions for the
IoT.
AT&T The communications giant is trying to make itself the standard when it comes to con-
necting devices. It has already connected more than 26 million devices in the US, and theyre
present all over the world.
Cisco The household name provides pretty much every solution for the IoT, from routing
and switching to Wireless and embedded networks, and all scalable to huge size.
General Electric GE more or less coined the term Industrial Internet. As youd expect
from a company this size, GE provide everything from the sensors to the network and the
software platform, known as Predix.
IBM Has partnered with Libelium to provide an IoT starter kit to go with its Watson

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 The Internet of Things Companies Guide

Platform. Specifically, IBM provide a 6LPWA (Low-Power, Wide-Area) network to connect

devices with Libelium wireless sensors.
SIGFOX Global connectivity network for internet of things, concentrated on low-through-
put communication in order to maximise speed, efficiency and battery life.
Ingenu A network provider, it uses RPMA wireless signals to get information and data flow-
ing between devices and servers. Says one access point can provide 300+ sqm of coverage.
Eseye Already has 440+ networks set-up worldwide. Provides the network, the sim card to
connect to it and a number of different gateways, as well as design, testing and management
services.
ThingPark Provided by Actility, this is a low-power wireless network provider, covering up
to 15km in rural areas or 2-5km in urban ones. Designed for Smart Cities and Smart Homes.

Specific Industries
The Internet of Things can cover pretty much any object a sensor can be attached to and that
will generate meaningful data. Having said that, there are particular places in which the IoT is
being developed due to its high usefulness, though thats not to say these are the only ap-
plications out there. If anything, its still early days for the IoT and its too early to tell which
parts of our lives the IoT will revolutionise the most.

Cybersecurity
Mocana The Security of Things platform provides a security layer between the cloud and
the devices it connects to, from automotive to industrial IT sensors. Includes file protection,
secure connectivity and device authentication.
Nexdefense Specifically aimed at industrial control systems, Sophia is a software which
monitors your network and scans for anomalies which may give intrusions away. The US
department of energy is involved in development.
Bastille A monitoring platform for the workplace, it combines machine learning as analytics
to keep track of all devices connected to your network, identify abnormal behaviour, prevent
air attacks and more.

Retail
Scanalytics Underfloor foot-traffic analytics (both the sensors and the platform provided)
for retail stores to keep track of customer behaviour and monitor foot traffic.
Euclid Analytics software, offers three different products: brick-and-mortar location an-
alytics, comparison analytics and both of the above applied to marketing and improving the
bottom line.
Placemeter Analytics for the city, analyses video and converts it into data on foot-traffic,
volume and directions of pedestrians and vehicles and more.

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 The Internet of Things Companies Guide

Prism Skylabs Transforms cameras into analytics tools, allowing you to divide shop or
factory floors in areas, track items, people and traffic, turning it all into actionable data.

Industrial
Waygum Delivers the last mile mobile layer to industrial IoT networks. A platform for
users to manage inventory, monitor services, track costs and analyse big data from their
factory floor or supply chain.
Cyberlightning Offers various solutions for big data, especially in the energy sector and
the smart city, can also be mobile based.

Wearables
Jawbone One of the best fitness trackers around: while it already has an app to go with it,
they can also supply you with an API for you to make your own.
Misfit Has a very wide array of IoT-connected devices such as fitness trackers and watches,
but also supplies an SDK and an API for building apps for connecting devices through your
phone, both iOS and Android.

Smart Home
Sentri A one-size-fits-all solution for home monitoring, connecting all the devices in your
house with a simple app which you can use to control and track heating, cameras, appliances
and more.
Lockitron IoT-connected locks for doors: can be used for home to lock and unlock remote-
ly, but really comes into its own with the app in a workspace.
August IoT-connected devices to use at your threshold: connectable doorlocks, doorbells
and keypads.
uBeam Uses sound waves to provide wireless battery charging. Not precisely IoT-related
but certainly part of a smart, wireless home.
Peel Its signature product is an app that Turns any smartphone or tablet into a remote to
control IoT connected devices. Easy set up.

Consultants
Where to get the best news, insights, reports, analysis and strategy. The Internet of Things
is a brave new world developing extremely quickly, and these resources will help you stay on
top of the latest trends and innovations.
GSMA GSMA cover a wide range of tech topics, but are particularly active in the IoT:
theyve launched the LPWA Initiative and created IoT best practice protocols together with
their IoT partner companies.

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 The Internet of Things Companies Guide

Machina Research Research and analysis on big data, M2M networks and the IoT. They can
either offer bespoke research on your specific requirements, or provide market intelligence,
strategy and reports on the sector.
MachNation Insights, strategy and analysis are all part of the MachNation package, but
their main product is Io3, a bespoke search engine for IoT-related companies and services
and products.
IoT Analytics Insights and reports on the ever-increasing IoT market. Some of their prod-
uct is free, such as the quarterly IoT company rankings, while others are on a pay-per-report
basis.

Conclusion
The IoT ecology is very much in its early days, with new innovations, ideas, standards and
applications emerging and evolving every day. It truly is the new frontier for mobile technol-
ogy and networks, so we hope the list above provides you with a good guide of which compa-
nies are doing what. Given the fast pace at which this world market is moving, however, there
are bound to be more companies and actors coming up if you think weve missed any, drop
us a line!

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